The endgame is simple. To utterly destroy a cult that has sworn to murder every Jew on earth and has shown a willingness to undertake that task with unparalleled cruelty--with promises of endless repeats of that occasion. Can't think of a clearer endgame. The fact that no other nation on earth is expected to show restraint in the face of such monstrosity is antisemitism, not politics.
It's a challenge. It's a problem. But not one you can wish away. And I agree, that military force isn't particularly good at defeating ideas. It can be very good at altering the incentives regarding actualizing those ideas. The purpose of WWII was not to change the minds of German and Japanese and Italian death cults, but rather to persuade them that putting their philosophies into practice would be quite a costly endeavor on a personal basis. And, frankly, to remind the populations that tolerate such cults that proximity has its costs. Having suffered under his reign, it was Italians, after all, who hung the battered corpses of Mussolini and Clara Petacci upside down.
I have a friend who was high-ranking military. He once advised a Secretary of Defense to keep in mind that armies are good at killing people and breaking shit, not at winning hearts and changing minds.
I understand, but I might offer a contrarian view--that concern with the "endgame" might be what has so hamstrung Western military efforts in the post-WWII era. What was our endgame in WWII? Yes, some in high places were giving thought to postwar Germany, Japan, and Italy, but it was more afterthought. The primary goal was to grind those countries' military might into dust and to give their populations the opportunity to renounce their dead and dying tyrants and forge a road back into the civilized world. Had we focused on winning the hearts and minds of the German and Japanese populations, I'm not sure we would have won--at least not as quickly as we did. And frankly, the most effective endgames are those that cause the populations to hate the leaders who dragged them into hell. Let me offer a few words from General Sherman's letter to the people of Atlanta:
Oddly enough, the former fairly often produces the latter to a surprising degree. If the Israelis destroy Hamas militarily, I think they will have gone far towards purging the idea of Hamas.
That wouldn’t be the end of Palestinian nationalism, but the Israelis aren’t fighting Palestinian nationalism. Which I suspect will turn out to be a mistake.
The article addresses Trump, very clearly. My article addresses antisemitism specifically, not all the other demons of Trump and people on the right. The article specifically addresses the "very fine people on both sides" and how Trump and Biden are the two most rhetorically sloppy and careless presidents in U.S. history. If one wants to slam Trump (or Biden), there is no need to misquote them or take their words out of context. Both men are very generous is offering authentic instances of demagoguery.
My daughter would be one. 10/7 totally re-arranged her priors on Israel/Palestinian issues. It's been interesting to hear her describe feeling quite isolated from many of her peers on the issue.
Yes. Have sadly continued to see critiques of John Fetterman from the right. It’s useless to do that. And yes. Hilary Clinton looks very good here. Because she is.
So are the Commandos, metaphorically, the Israelis and Alec Guinness the leftist Jews, because at the end everybody dies? What's maddening is the beam in the leftist eye that causes them to deny the deadly consequence of their belief system. I can't help but think that if they got such a big thing wrong why should trust the other 80%.
Die Hard with a Vengeance - "John McClane: I'll tell you what your problem is, you don't like me 'cause you're a racist!
Zeus Carver: What?
John McClane: You're a racist! You don't like me 'cause I'm white!
Zeus Carver: I don't like you because you're gonna get me *killed*! "
I am a huge believer in the human survival instinct. I trust someone who thinks their life is on the line. Their grasp on reality is usually reliable. Some on the left recognized themselves in the burned and beheaded bodies of the kibbutzim of the south. Their thinking has a clarity and a realism it didn’t have before. Dystopian leftists schemes don’t appeal to people in mortal danger; they appeal to people who are looking for meaning and are somewhat bored.
Another point is that casting antisemitism as an outgrowth of Republicans or Trump was a break with the past, a refusal to heed the warnings of Holocaust survivors, and even the generations who fled the pogroms of Russia, that antisemitism is a deadly threat, not a partisan dog whistle. October 7 is oft cited as proof that everyone’s grandparents were right. Perhaps there is a chance for real change: slight, incremental, narrowly tailored change. Hearts and minds.
Most of the people I know who escaped from Communism never had a problem with President Trump. They would tell me that the left caused them to have déjà vu.
Dear Mr. Graboyes: There are examples that support your notion, e.g. John Fetterman on canning Robert Menendez from the Senate, or defending Jews from anti-Semitism. But there's many more examples going the other way e.g.
1. Retaining Claudine Gay as Harvard's Prez after the massive evidence of plagiarism in her skimpy ac academic writings. This retention must bring a sour smile to ex-Prez of Penn Magill's face as she reflects that her liberal bigotry was not enough to save her, that she lacked the essential checked box of blackness, that excuses all transgressions to liberal bigots.
2. The liberal bigots of Martha's Vineyard, who warbled with joy when less than 200 illegal aliens were bused to their community----and promptly heaved said illegals to an icky military base where they belonged instead in the lily-white environment of Marty's.
I could go on. The test is much less talking to liberals than acting on them. I would suggest a variant on your scheme: work for your favorite political candidate;, e.g. Big Don Trump in the f all elections. Not by contributing money, but by canvassing a district, having to talk to people face to face. Face to face is better even than phone banking. It tends to enforce politeness, in your goal of trying to win their vote. Such canvassing would have a better effect than any number of online posts---including mine.
Thanks. Fetterman isn't unique. There's Torres. There are the university donors pulling their legacies. There's Bill Maher railing against the Jew-haters. Those like Larry Summers. There are the 22 Democratic representatives who voted to censure Rashida Tlaib. There are journalists like Bari Weiss, who is somewhere on the left but has been pumping out the strongest words imaginable on this problem. This is not a call to work with Ilhan Omar. As a Jew, I don't have the luxury of throwing away those who wish to take the righteous side in this particular struggle. Even if the numbers are only modest.
He's isn't unique but he is rare. And it will be interesting to see if he is written out of the progressive club for this. I'm betting he will be. And 22 whole Democrats willing to censure a jihadi who happens to be in Congress? Sorry, there should have been 200 voting to expel her. It is fun to watch Bari Weiss wake up and realize the nightmare is real. It appears to me that so much of the left is lost to the latest antisemitism rage that there is no saving it.
BULLSHIT, BULLSHIT, BULLSHIT. You’re posting a scurrilous out-of-context clip in which he was discussing POW camps in Vietnam, not WWII. The JFK Library has a transcript showing that he was answering a question as to whether the Diem regime had imprisoned 6 million Vietnamese.
I already have. No congratulations. No word or actions of mine prompted her changed views. She is simply morally grounded enough to distinguish utter barbarism when she saw it, and of that I am not surprised but I am grateful for her response to the way her mother and I raised her to be.
I’m cautious about embracing those of either political persuasion with whom I agree on one issue but disagree on many, my mantra being “the enemy of my enemy has good taste in enemies”. While I would prefer to remain cordial with those I disagree, and almost always start with that intention, I recognize that sometimes oil and water don’t mix.
That said, I’m open to being surprised. During the pandemic my family (wife, son and his wife and 2 kids) decided to get out of our houses for a picnic at a nearby lake. We expected it to be occupied, but not to the extent that it was — a pro-Trump rally and boat parade was underway. My son, a classic Mike Stivic “Meathead,” was aghast and ready to abandon the picnic for safety reasons. My wife, ever the optimist, suggested we have our picnic, mind our own business and then go home when we were done. To make a long story short, we met tons of open, friendly people, not a one of whom tried to talk politics or make anyone feel unwelcome. Most of my family is not “white” and that seemed to matter not a bit. Our kids played with their kids, food was shared and we ended up staying to watch the boat parade. None of us voted for Trump, by the way, although I really wanted to buy a Trumpy Bear for the kids.
I wish I had a similar story on the other side, but I don’t. Nothing bad, either, but the opportunity to mingle with far left “progressives “ doesn’t seem to present itself often unless I want to join a protest.
Anyway, great article as always. Thanks for writing it.
There are a substantial number of people on the left who are not antisemites and never have been, who unknowingly allied themselves with people who are antisemites and always have been, who supported upbeat-sounding policies that indirectly gin up antisemitism, and who are currently seeing the light of day. I'm happy to encourage such people, and I have no need to remind them that they could have seen all of this coming. Admittedly, my friends and readers are a biased sample, but I've been stunned by how many really opinionated folks among them have written to admit that they were blind. Of special interest are parents who tell me that their kids have been stunned into reconsidering their associations.
RE: "Those on the right ought not miss the opportunity to make some 20% allies for this particular fight."
Robert,
The problem is that the traditionally leftist Jewish community has fought Christian conservatives since the 1930s on every single issue: abortion, homosexuality, traditional marriage, school choice, immigration, voter id, etc. They have always seen us as 100% enemy in spite of the fact that conservatives and Christians have always supported Israel. As one who is both, I have supported Israel since 1967. They became David in my 13 year old eyes. However, I have also always known that American Jews are not the same thing. They see me as 100% enemy. Now that Israel is in an existential moment, they continue to have our support. But what do we get in return for supporting American leftists who have always hated us? Qui bono? Not us. At the first conflict they will part from us just as the woke left parted from them. The problem is the basis of the respective ideologies. The left is power-based. The right is principle-based. The left sees subverting everything we stand for as good. Your proposed 20% project faces a steep uphill battle, but don't blame it on us. We've been available for a 20% alliance for the past 80 years but all we ever got was 0%. That ship sailed for good in 2008 and sunk in 2020. We are facing an existential crisis of survival ourselves and the Jewish left not only didn't help us, they helped our enemies. So, what kind of support on specific issues can conservatives and Christians count on from the Jewish left in return for our support?
You're generalizing about Jews in the exact same way that some Jews generalize about Christians. My previous essay took such Jews to task for their broad, sweeping assumptions about Christian motivations. As often as not, the sort of attitudes you describe come from those Jews who are least connected to Judaism and to the Jewish community. You could have made similar accusations about American Catholics until they migrated en masse to the Reagan umbrella.
Respectfully, that's not true. I was careful to talk about "leftist" Jews who are not to be distinguished from other leftists excepting the woke nihilists. Those on the left hate Christians as do those on the far right who spit on Christians visiting in Israel which the left doesn't do. (If it weren't against the law to do so what more might they do?). Those in the middle? Well, we have always been allies through shared values. My question, which you ignored, still stands: "What kind of support on specific issues can conservatives and Christians count on from the Jewish left in return for our support?"
I’d still say it’s stereotyping. Plenty do fit your description, to my regret. I know plenty of leftist Jews who don’t fit that mold—not enough, to my regret. As for what you might expect, how about more opposition to critical race theory in schools, DEI in a broad number of institutions, a restored devotion to free speech, reining in the universities. And, yes, rethinking their opinions of Christians. Have a look at the shift in Jewish opinion in Britain from Labour to Tory. I’m not suggesting that ALL will cross over. But I suspect a substantial number are already reevaluating their stances. I’m particularly interested in seeing how the bruised and battered 18-30 group responds over time. I recall conservative pundits 15 years ago ridiculing the notion that a substantial bloc of Hispanics would ever become Republican voters. Now, it has happened.
It is not stereotyping to describe a person's political position. Am I stereotyping myself by saying I am a "conservative Christian"? It's an accurate descriptor. Call me "right wing" if you like. From your perspective, that might be true. More to the point, "opposition to critical race theory in schools, DEI in a broad number of institutions, a restored devotion to free speech, reining in the universities" is only what they should have been doing all this time and shows no support at all for our specific causes, so I guess we're still at odds. As for "rethinking their opinions of Christians," that will never happen. Nonetheless, if the left would just get on the right side of history and the value scale I'd be satisfied.
Please don’t speculate on how I view you or anyone else, either in political or theological terms.
I actually don’t think “conservative Christian” is a precise descriptor. Some people might perceive that category to include Pope Francis, the Westboro Baptist Church, Anglicans, Freewill Baptists, Missouri Synod Lutherans, LDS, Church of Scotland, and an endless array of other categories that have relatively little in common with one another.
As for “that will never happen,” I deny that you somehow have the capacity to predict The Mind of the Jew for all eternity. Your reading is based upon a minute sliver of geography and time in a history that spans 3,200 years and every spot of the globe.
I appreciate Christian support for Israel and for Jews in general more deeply than I can say, but the relationship was far more tumultuous in the past. Our grandparents left Europe to a considerable extent because of sadistic torments launched by church officials. In the 1930s, radio ministers fulminated nightly against Jews.
In my hometown in the 1950s and 1960s, we were very much welcomed, but all was not perfect. We were banned from setting foot in the local country club; the more wacko teachers casually informed us in front of the class that we would burn in hell; neighborhood kids would stalk us at times to taunt us and bloody our noses for being Jewish; and a mere decade or two after WWII, some would scrawl swastikas on our synagogue. If you wonder why so many leftist Jews resist Christian support, I will tell you that these memories took a terrible toll, and some of that lives on in the Jews you view as unappreciative.
As for me, I greatly benefited from growing up next door to a scholarly Presbyterian minister who was probably the most important spiritual figure in my childhood. Today, some of the childhood tormentors described above are cherished friends who found their moral centers through a more profound and accurate reading of Christianity.
I think we're talking at cross-purposes here because even though I keep typing "leftists" you insist on reading "Jews." I only include Jews in my critique of leftists because that was the basis of your entire argument. Read this plainly: Leftists, including leftist Jews, will not change their positions. As far as they're concerned, Israel is just one square on the board of world domination.
- "I deny that you somehow have the capacity to predict The Mind of the Jew for all eternity." This is an unworthy projection on your part.
- "Our grandparents left Europe to a considerable extent because of sadistic torments launched by church officials. In the 1930s, radio ministers fulminated nightly against Jews." I don't dispute that in the least. My parents and siblings were forced to emigrate here because of our nation's fascists, none of whom happened to be Jewish by the way.
- For what it's worth, because of my physiognomy, I was once reviled as a Jew. I not only did not deny it I went after the guy and we had to be separated, leaving the impression that I was Jewish. That was a proud moment.
So, keeping in mind that I am writing about leftists in general, and Jewish leftists in context, I hope we can put an end to this and agree to agree 80%. ;^)
Richard, I’m going to advocate for what I think is right and people can join my side and that would be great. There isn’t a “council” of Jewish leftists you can go to and make a deal with. There are just people doing their thing, and if they join the fight against DEI, anti colonialism, critical theory, etc, that’s great. I’ll have allies on an important issue to me. With 20% allies I don’t think it can be transactional.
Sometimes it doesn’t matter if you get something in return - it’s more important to do what is right / moral. Whether someone from the left will trade something in return is irrelevant - Israel has the right to exist and to defend itself, period.
Thanks to you both for a fine set of arguments. I really like quantitative measures, so discussing the difference between 80/20, or 70/30, reminds me that:
“The Perfect is the Enemy of the Good.”
Which is also often why idealistic left folks hate the good Republicans, the imperfect but nevertheless good status quo is the enemy of the unrealistic perfection espoused by the sincere idealist progressives who demand change.
In practice, I doubt that many Hillary supporting Jews, or other Dems, will actually vote for Trump or any Republican. Lots more might fail to vote at all, fail to promote rallies, or donate*** and…
my own hope… fail to support rage and hate against whatever has been, and thus been working, since WW II. 20, 30, and even only 10% allies are worth working with on the agreed issues, like against Hamas barbarism.
Sage advice, well given! I would argue that Lincoln was a lifelong practitioner and exemplar of both Reagan's 80/20 Rule and your 20/80 Corollary. We should so aspire...
The endgame is simple. To utterly destroy a cult that has sworn to murder every Jew on earth and has shown a willingness to undertake that task with unparalleled cruelty--with promises of endless repeats of that occasion. Can't think of a clearer endgame. The fact that no other nation on earth is expected to show restraint in the face of such monstrosity is antisemitism, not politics.
It's a challenge. It's a problem. But not one you can wish away. And I agree, that military force isn't particularly good at defeating ideas. It can be very good at altering the incentives regarding actualizing those ideas. The purpose of WWII was not to change the minds of German and Japanese and Italian death cults, but rather to persuade them that putting their philosophies into practice would be quite a costly endeavor on a personal basis. And, frankly, to remind the populations that tolerate such cults that proximity has its costs. Having suffered under his reign, it was Italians, after all, who hung the battered corpses of Mussolini and Clara Petacci upside down.
I have a friend who was high-ranking military. He once advised a Secretary of Defense to keep in mind that armies are good at killing people and breaking shit, not at winning hearts and changing minds.
I understand, but I might offer a contrarian view--that concern with the "endgame" might be what has so hamstrung Western military efforts in the post-WWII era. What was our endgame in WWII? Yes, some in high places were giving thought to postwar Germany, Japan, and Italy, but it was more afterthought. The primary goal was to grind those countries' military might into dust and to give their populations the opportunity to renounce their dead and dying tyrants and forge a road back into the civilized world. Had we focused on winning the hearts and minds of the German and Japanese populations, I'm not sure we would have won--at least not as quickly as we did. And frankly, the most effective endgames are those that cause the populations to hate the leaders who dragged them into hell. Let me offer a few words from General Sherman's letter to the people of Atlanta:
Oddly enough, the former fairly often produces the latter to a surprising degree. If the Israelis destroy Hamas militarily, I think they will have gone far towards purging the idea of Hamas.
That wouldn’t be the end of Palestinian nationalism, but the Israelis aren’t fighting Palestinian nationalism. Which I suspect will turn out to be a mistake.
The article addresses Trump, very clearly. My article addresses antisemitism specifically, not all the other demons of Trump and people on the right. The article specifically addresses the "very fine people on both sides" and how Trump and Biden are the two most rhetorically sloppy and careless presidents in U.S. history. If one wants to slam Trump (or Biden), there is no need to misquote them or take their words out of context. Both men are very generous is offering authentic instances of demagoguery.
Everything I do is on purpose. :)
I’d like this twice if I could.
Thanks! Persuade a friend to subscribe and ask them to like it. :)
Exactly.
Best thinking on the subject and best writing on the subject by far.
Honored!
Well deserved.
Superb. Are we interested in "owning the libs" or in changing minds? sadly, too many wish the former...
Thanks. And I'm especially interested in those minds that are already turning on their own.
My daughter would be one. 10/7 totally re-arranged her priors on Israel/Palestinian issues. It's been interesting to hear her describe feeling quite isolated from many of her peers on the issue.
I wish there were from the Republicans’ most likely presidential nominee.
Wow. Send her my two pieces and my congratulations.
Yes. Have sadly continued to see critiques of John Fetterman from the right. It’s useless to do that. And yes. Hilary Clinton looks very good here. Because she is.
Well, being good on one issue, however important, doesn’t insulate a public official from all other criticism.
But speaking for myself, I have latterly said some unaccustomed good things about both Senator Fetterman and former senator Clinton.
In a world full of mindless haters it’s just good to get some support.
I’m not sure whether to aspire to being regarded as a mindful hater or a mindless lover.
So are the Commandos, metaphorically, the Israelis and Alec Guinness the leftist Jews, because at the end everybody dies? What's maddening is the beam in the leftist eye that causes them to deny the deadly consequence of their belief system. I can't help but think that if they got such a big thing wrong why should trust the other 80%.
Die Hard with a Vengeance - "John McClane: I'll tell you what your problem is, you don't like me 'cause you're a racist!
Zeus Carver: What?
John McClane: You're a racist! You don't like me 'cause I'm white!
Zeus Carver: I don't like you because you're gonna get me *killed*! "
I am a huge believer in the human survival instinct. I trust someone who thinks their life is on the line. Their grasp on reality is usually reliable. Some on the left recognized themselves in the burned and beheaded bodies of the kibbutzim of the south. Their thinking has a clarity and a realism it didn’t have before. Dystopian leftists schemes don’t appeal to people in mortal danger; they appeal to people who are looking for meaning and are somewhat bored.
Another point is that casting antisemitism as an outgrowth of Republicans or Trump was a break with the past, a refusal to heed the warnings of Holocaust survivors, and even the generations who fled the pogroms of Russia, that antisemitism is a deadly threat, not a partisan dog whistle. October 7 is oft cited as proof that everyone’s grandparents were right. Perhaps there is a chance for real change: slight, incremental, narrowly tailored change. Hearts and minds.
Excellent
Most of the people I know who escaped from Communism never had a problem with President Trump. They would tell me that the left caused them to have déjà vu.
Nobody needs you to trust your political allies, or political cobelligerents, the way you trust your mother.
But if you’re serious about your political ends, you’ll use your assets for whatever they’re worth—as they will you, if they’re serious.
Welcome to the bigs.
Dear Mr. Graboyes: There are examples that support your notion, e.g. John Fetterman on canning Robert Menendez from the Senate, or defending Jews from anti-Semitism. But there's many more examples going the other way e.g.
1. Retaining Claudine Gay as Harvard's Prez after the massive evidence of plagiarism in her skimpy ac academic writings. This retention must bring a sour smile to ex-Prez of Penn Magill's face as she reflects that her liberal bigotry was not enough to save her, that she lacked the essential checked box of blackness, that excuses all transgressions to liberal bigots.
2. The liberal bigots of Martha's Vineyard, who warbled with joy when less than 200 illegal aliens were bused to their community----and promptly heaved said illegals to an icky military base where they belonged instead in the lily-white environment of Marty's.
I could go on. The test is much less talking to liberals than acting on them. I would suggest a variant on your scheme: work for your favorite political candidate;, e.g. Big Don Trump in the f all elections. Not by contributing money, but by canvassing a district, having to talk to people face to face. Face to face is better even than phone banking. It tends to enforce politeness, in your goal of trying to win their vote. Such canvassing would have a better effect than any number of online posts---including mine.
Thanks. Fetterman isn't unique. There's Torres. There are the university donors pulling their legacies. There's Bill Maher railing against the Jew-haters. Those like Larry Summers. There are the 22 Democratic representatives who voted to censure Rashida Tlaib. There are journalists like Bari Weiss, who is somewhere on the left but has been pumping out the strongest words imaginable on this problem. This is not a call to work with Ilhan Omar. As a Jew, I don't have the luxury of throwing away those who wish to take the righteous side in this particular struggle. Even if the numbers are only modest.
He's isn't unique but he is rare. And it will be interesting to see if he is written out of the progressive club for this. I'm betting he will be. And 22 whole Democrats willing to censure a jihadi who happens to be in Congress? Sorry, there should have been 200 voting to expel her. It is fun to watch Bari Weiss wake up and realize the nightmare is real. It appears to me that so much of the left is lost to the latest antisemitism rage that there is no saving it.
I’d heard of the Pareto principle, but not the 80/20 rule as Reagan espoused it.
This is a very wise essay. Thanks for writing it.
And thank you!
Funny you mention Ronnie Reagan, he didn't believe in the Holocaust: https://www.bitchute.com/video/hNgQNKCT8bTg/
BULLSHIT, BULLSHIT, BULLSHIT. You’re posting a scurrilous out-of-context clip in which he was discussing POW camps in Vietnam, not WWII. The JFK Library has a transcript showing that he was answering a question as to whether the Diem regime had imprisoned 6 million Vietnamese.
Reagan was quite eloquent in his discussion of the Holocaust: https://www.jta.org/archive/reagan-expresses-horror-at-claim-that-the-holocaust-is-a-hoax
I'd like to view the entire video. Unfortunately it has been scrubbed from the internet. If you have a link please share.
Do your own research. Not my job. Ask the JFK Library. Their transcript is good enough for me.
To those who might be interested. The late French historian Walter Laquer wrote a book titled "the Changing Face of Antisemittism" 20 years ago.
Thanks!
I already have. No congratulations. No word or actions of mine prompted her changed views. She is simply morally grounded enough to distinguish utter barbarism when she saw it, and of that I am not surprised but I am grateful for her response to the way her mother and I raised her to be.
I meant send HER my congratulations.
I’m cautious about embracing those of either political persuasion with whom I agree on one issue but disagree on many, my mantra being “the enemy of my enemy has good taste in enemies”. While I would prefer to remain cordial with those I disagree, and almost always start with that intention, I recognize that sometimes oil and water don’t mix.
That said, I’m open to being surprised. During the pandemic my family (wife, son and his wife and 2 kids) decided to get out of our houses for a picnic at a nearby lake. We expected it to be occupied, but not to the extent that it was — a pro-Trump rally and boat parade was underway. My son, a classic Mike Stivic “Meathead,” was aghast and ready to abandon the picnic for safety reasons. My wife, ever the optimist, suggested we have our picnic, mind our own business and then go home when we were done. To make a long story short, we met tons of open, friendly people, not a one of whom tried to talk politics or make anyone feel unwelcome. Most of my family is not “white” and that seemed to matter not a bit. Our kids played with their kids, food was shared and we ended up staying to watch the boat parade. None of us voted for Trump, by the way, although I really wanted to buy a Trumpy Bear for the kids.
I wish I had a similar story on the other side, but I don’t. Nothing bad, either, but the opportunity to mingle with far left “progressives “ doesn’t seem to present itself often unless I want to join a protest.
Anyway, great article as always. Thanks for writing it.
If you don’t mind, I’ll share a link to an excellent piece by Batya Ungar-Sargon somewhat on topic. https://news.yahoo.com/dei-delusion-never-serve-american-164536037.html
There are a substantial number of people on the left who are not antisemites and never have been, who unknowingly allied themselves with people who are antisemites and always have been, who supported upbeat-sounding policies that indirectly gin up antisemitism, and who are currently seeing the light of day. I'm happy to encourage such people, and I have no need to remind them that they could have seen all of this coming. Admittedly, my friends and readers are a biased sample, but I've been stunned by how many really opinionated folks among them have written to admit that they were blind. Of special interest are parents who tell me that their kids have been stunned into reconsidering their associations.
RE: "Those on the right ought not miss the opportunity to make some 20% allies for this particular fight."
Robert,
The problem is that the traditionally leftist Jewish community has fought Christian conservatives since the 1930s on every single issue: abortion, homosexuality, traditional marriage, school choice, immigration, voter id, etc. They have always seen us as 100% enemy in spite of the fact that conservatives and Christians have always supported Israel. As one who is both, I have supported Israel since 1967. They became David in my 13 year old eyes. However, I have also always known that American Jews are not the same thing. They see me as 100% enemy. Now that Israel is in an existential moment, they continue to have our support. But what do we get in return for supporting American leftists who have always hated us? Qui bono? Not us. At the first conflict they will part from us just as the woke left parted from them. The problem is the basis of the respective ideologies. The left is power-based. The right is principle-based. The left sees subverting everything we stand for as good. Your proposed 20% project faces a steep uphill battle, but don't blame it on us. We've been available for a 20% alliance for the past 80 years but all we ever got was 0%. That ship sailed for good in 2008 and sunk in 2020. We are facing an existential crisis of survival ourselves and the Jewish left not only didn't help us, they helped our enemies. So, what kind of support on specific issues can conservatives and Christians count on from the Jewish left in return for our support?
You're generalizing about Jews in the exact same way that some Jews generalize about Christians. My previous essay took such Jews to task for their broad, sweeping assumptions about Christian motivations. As often as not, the sort of attitudes you describe come from those Jews who are least connected to Judaism and to the Jewish community. You could have made similar accusations about American Catholics until they migrated en masse to the Reagan umbrella.
Robert,
Respectfully, that's not true. I was careful to talk about "leftist" Jews who are not to be distinguished from other leftists excepting the woke nihilists. Those on the left hate Christians as do those on the far right who spit on Christians visiting in Israel which the left doesn't do. (If it weren't against the law to do so what more might they do?). Those in the middle? Well, we have always been allies through shared values. My question, which you ignored, still stands: "What kind of support on specific issues can conservatives and Christians count on from the Jewish left in return for our support?"
I’d still say it’s stereotyping. Plenty do fit your description, to my regret. I know plenty of leftist Jews who don’t fit that mold—not enough, to my regret. As for what you might expect, how about more opposition to critical race theory in schools, DEI in a broad number of institutions, a restored devotion to free speech, reining in the universities. And, yes, rethinking their opinions of Christians. Have a look at the shift in Jewish opinion in Britain from Labour to Tory. I’m not suggesting that ALL will cross over. But I suspect a substantial number are already reevaluating their stances. I’m particularly interested in seeing how the bruised and battered 18-30 group responds over time. I recall conservative pundits 15 years ago ridiculing the notion that a substantial bloc of Hispanics would ever become Republican voters. Now, it has happened.
It is not stereotyping to describe a person's political position. Am I stereotyping myself by saying I am a "conservative Christian"? It's an accurate descriptor. Call me "right wing" if you like. From your perspective, that might be true. More to the point, "opposition to critical race theory in schools, DEI in a broad number of institutions, a restored devotion to free speech, reining in the universities" is only what they should have been doing all this time and shows no support at all for our specific causes, so I guess we're still at odds. As for "rethinking their opinions of Christians," that will never happen. Nonetheless, if the left would just get on the right side of history and the value scale I'd be satisfied.
Please don’t speculate on how I view you or anyone else, either in political or theological terms.
I actually don’t think “conservative Christian” is a precise descriptor. Some people might perceive that category to include Pope Francis, the Westboro Baptist Church, Anglicans, Freewill Baptists, Missouri Synod Lutherans, LDS, Church of Scotland, and an endless array of other categories that have relatively little in common with one another.
As for “that will never happen,” I deny that you somehow have the capacity to predict The Mind of the Jew for all eternity. Your reading is based upon a minute sliver of geography and time in a history that spans 3,200 years and every spot of the globe.
I appreciate Christian support for Israel and for Jews in general more deeply than I can say, but the relationship was far more tumultuous in the past. Our grandparents left Europe to a considerable extent because of sadistic torments launched by church officials. In the 1930s, radio ministers fulminated nightly against Jews.
In my hometown in the 1950s and 1960s, we were very much welcomed, but all was not perfect. We were banned from setting foot in the local country club; the more wacko teachers casually informed us in front of the class that we would burn in hell; neighborhood kids would stalk us at times to taunt us and bloody our noses for being Jewish; and a mere decade or two after WWII, some would scrawl swastikas on our synagogue. If you wonder why so many leftist Jews resist Christian support, I will tell you that these memories took a terrible toll, and some of that lives on in the Jews you view as unappreciative.
As for me, I greatly benefited from growing up next door to a scholarly Presbyterian minister who was probably the most important spiritual figure in my childhood. Today, some of the childhood tormentors described above are cherished friends who found their moral centers through a more profound and accurate reading of Christianity.
Robert,
I think we're talking at cross-purposes here because even though I keep typing "leftists" you insist on reading "Jews." I only include Jews in my critique of leftists because that was the basis of your entire argument. Read this plainly: Leftists, including leftist Jews, will not change their positions. As far as they're concerned, Israel is just one square on the board of world domination.
- "I deny that you somehow have the capacity to predict The Mind of the Jew for all eternity." This is an unworthy projection on your part.
- "Our grandparents left Europe to a considerable extent because of sadistic torments launched by church officials. In the 1930s, radio ministers fulminated nightly against Jews." I don't dispute that in the least. My parents and siblings were forced to emigrate here because of our nation's fascists, none of whom happened to be Jewish by the way.
- For what it's worth, because of my physiognomy, I was once reviled as a Jew. I not only did not deny it I went after the guy and we had to be separated, leaving the impression that I was Jewish. That was a proud moment.
So, keeping in mind that I am writing about leftists in general, and Jewish leftists in context, I hope we can put an end to this and agree to agree 80%. ;^)
Richard, I’m going to advocate for what I think is right and people can join my side and that would be great. There isn’t a “council” of Jewish leftists you can go to and make a deal with. There are just people doing their thing, and if they join the fight against DEI, anti colonialism, critical theory, etc, that’s great. I’ll have allies on an important issue to me. With 20% allies I don’t think it can be transactional.
Sometimes it doesn’t matter if you get something in return - it’s more important to do what is right / moral. Whether someone from the left will trade something in return is irrelevant - Israel has the right to exist and to defend itself, period.
Agreed Cindy.
Well spoken, Cindy Akins!
Thanks to you both for a fine set of arguments. I really like quantitative measures, so discussing the difference between 80/20, or 70/30, reminds me that:
“The Perfect is the Enemy of the Good.”
Which is also often why idealistic left folks hate the good Republicans, the imperfect but nevertheless good status quo is the enemy of the unrealistic perfection espoused by the sincere idealist progressives who demand change.
In practice, I doubt that many Hillary supporting Jews, or other Dems, will actually vote for Trump or any Republican. Lots more might fail to vote at all, fail to promote rallies, or donate*** and…
my own hope… fail to support rage and hate against whatever has been, and thus been working, since WW II. 20, 30, and even only 10% allies are worth working with on the agreed issues, like against Hamas barbarism.
Sage advice, well given! I would argue that Lincoln was a lifelong practitioner and exemplar of both Reagan's 80/20 Rule and your 20/80 Corollary. We should so aspire...